Replay: A D-FW sports talk with Kevin Sherrington (7/9/14)

SportsDay

Kevin Sherrington joins us at 11 a.m. Wednesday, but ask your questions now and he will have them when he arrives. Thanks for your readership!

by SportsDayDFW7/7/2014 6:53:00 PM

I'm here. Let's go.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:00:24 PM

Mavs will win a title before any other Dallas pro team will.

by NO_NAME7/9/2014 4:00:37 PM

I'd have to say the Stars, given the moves Nill has made this off-season. Right now, with no consideration given to whatever anyone's done in the past in these parts, he's leading the local pack of GMs. And it's a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately world.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:02:07 PM

Elementary Sherrington! The reason the Cowboys are stuck at 8-8 is the second round selections for the past decade. Here goes: 2013 Escobar who did little. 2012 given away for Clairborne. 2011 Carter. 2010 Sean (I'm injured) Lee. 2009 Given to Buffalo for a load of coal*. 2008 Marty B* 2007 Somehow Cleveland ended up with this choice. 2006 Anthony Fasano -traded for a 4th. 2005 Kevin Burnett. 2004 Julius Jones (Jerry actually passed on Steven Jackson. *tied for worst decisions ever.

by Sherlok Homes7/9/2014 4:02:12 PM

Yes, we're quite aware of Jerry's draft record. All you have to do to determine the reason for the success of any NFL team is look at its draft record. Super Bowl teams invariably have drafts where they hit on three or four solid-to-good starters in multiple years. Even in his better drafts over the last 20 years, Jerry has had trouble connecting on that many. He's shown signs of improvement lately. All Cowboys fans can hope.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:04:19 PM

I am writing a horror story (book) about the 2014 Cowboys defense. Would you like to have an advance copy, say midway through the season?

by Stephen King7/9/2014 4:04:23 PM

By that time, I think we'll have already seen the movie.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:04:41 PM

Will you tell Prince Fielder that he sure made him momma and grandmother real proud!

by Can U Believeit7/9/2014 4:04:48 PM

What was interesting about Prince's spectacle, if you'd like to call it that, was his far more revealing interview. He talked about how it was his father, Cecil, the Tiger slugger, who made him such a tough guy when it comes to aches and pains. Told him he wasn't hurt when he had pains as a kid. Also talked about how he lost feeling in his left arm, and his left hand would come off the bat on his swing, causing him to roll over on the ball, denying him the lift needed to generate fly balls. Moral: No one likes a whiner, but if you've got a problem, tell somebody. If he'd done that in Detroit, maybe the fans wouldn't have come down so hard on him. And maybe Kinsler would still be a Ranger.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:08:02 PM

I love Jason Witten a player and he should play a couple more years, but I would like to se all the tight ends play more so when Jason does retire these players will be full ready. and why cant the defense coaches be more like Dick Butkus (mean)

by Lary Beachum7/9/2014 4:08:14 PM

Reasons the Cowboys drafted Escobar so high: So they could use more multiple TE sets, and so they could develop Witten's successor. The problem was that Escobar is nowhere near the blocker Witten is. The Cowboys couldn't give Marty B a lot of reps because of the mistakes he made, and now they seem stuck in the same boat with Escobar because of his perceived weaknesses. The new guy, Scott Linehan, has promised to exploit what Escobar does best. A good idea.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:10:41 PM

Jerry Jones give Cleveland a 3r round pick for Josh Gordon right now the kid will overcome his problem it will make your team better Jerry.

by Larry Beachum7/9/2014 4:10:43 PM

Chances are pretty good that Gordon will miss most, if not all, of this season because of his failed drug test and DWI. Do you give up a third for a guy who won't be here, and who might continue to be a problem? Maybe. He's a tremendous talent. But it's worth noting that Cleveland players reportedly are giving up on him. Not good when you're teammates no longer believe in you.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:12:11 PM

It seems really quite at the Cowboys corral. No arrests, no nothing! Other than the mysterious Mr. Orton who doesn't seem to give a who, there is no news. I take this as good news but it may put Calvin Hill out of a job. With that said, I think Jerry should keep Calvin on the payroll to take the 3 a. m. calls from Dallas P.D. What is going on?

by Wrecks Rhine7/9/2014 4:12:16 PM

Could be part of the culture change that Jason Garrett has tried to induce. Could be some good luck. The Cowboys certainly need it, given the recent history of the death of one player, Josh Brent's arrest, the still lingering possibility they might take Brent back, and the recent acquisition of Rolando McClain, who had enough problems that he's retired twice at 25. Jerry always likes to push the edge of the envelope, which you sometimes have to do when you don't succeed through more conventional means, e.g., the draft.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:14:46 PM

Do you believe the Cowboys have done enough in the offseason to prevent many of the nagging injuries that have hurt them in the past?

by Tucker7/9/2014 4:14:49 PM

Fans don't have much patience with injury stories. When an athlete gets hurt, people want to blame someone. If it's not the athlete, it's the athletic training staff. Certainly the latter is a possibility. The Cowboys made some changes, notably more stretching exercises and an apparatus or six to help. Certainly couldn't hurt, and it was probably time to update the regimen.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:17:44 PM

OK, so you've just been named Rangers GM. Do you (1) go after hitters in the off season thinking the team is still a couple of bats short, or (2) try to prop up the rotation behind Darvish with as many starters as you can find.

by Jake7/9/2014 4:17:48 PM

For the record, I said going into the season that the Rangers were short in the rotation and in the lineup. Why I advocated the signing of Ervin Santana and the re-signing of Nelson Cruz. I still think they'll be short in the rotation and lineup next year, even with the return of Fielder and Moreland and Profar, if he has a place to play anymore. Harrison's career may be over, and Perez won't be ready when the season starts. The Rangers can't simply count on Perez to ride to the rescue later, which is basically how they regarded Holland's status this year. What does it mean? If this season continues to plummet into the abyss, the Rangers will end up with a very high pick in the draft. They didn't like giving up the first pick when it was in the 20s or more. No way Daniels will give it up now with a free agent signing. So any improvements will have to be made by trade. They're not going to give up any more of their minor league top prospects, e.g., Gallo or Jackson or Brinson. I'd say Elvis and maybe even Leonys could end up as trade bait.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:22:55 PM

The Rangers a obviously going to need more pitching and power bats next season. Knowing that, why wouldn't they go ahead and start the rebuilding process now while we have 3 weeks before the trading deadline?

by jamespate19487/9/2014 4:23:04 PM

Sometimes you can get a team over a barrel at the trade deadline and get more for the player than what he's worth in more thoughtful times. But in the off-season you've got a better inventory of teams to consider your players. Also, there's a good question about what the Rangers can give up that won't hurt their chances next season. If they trade Rios and don't pick up his option for next season, who plays right field? The first candidate, Michael Choice, just got sent down after an extended slump. You could get some nice parts for Adrian Beltre, but who plays third? And who's the leader in the clubhouse then? This team has some serious voids, and there's no need to create even larger ones.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:25:55 PM

What sort of scenario could you see JD being on shakier ground than Wash?

by U Know Who7/9/2014 4:26:03 PM

The last two off-seasons, it's been the front office that failed the Rangers, not the manager. Wash is pretty much off the hook this season. How do you win with the lineup he's had? Daniels gets some rope with four 90-win seasons and the construction of back-to-back World Series teams. But the vaunted farm system is not what it appeared, at least at the higher levels. Part of the reason has been trades. Part is that prospects simply haven't panned out.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:28:47 PM

A few days ago Jerry was lamenting the fact that he may have let Manziel slip through his fingers. Based on the "Weekends In Vegas" of the recent past do you still think Jerry is moaning the blues over passing him over?

by Dr. Ozz7/9/2014 4:29:03 PM

Before we write off Johnny, let's consider some history: Going into his sophomore year, he was involved in several off-the-field incidents that further tarnished his burgeoning reputation. Everyone was down on him. Then the season started, and he was once again terrific. He didn't get into any trouble, and no one talked about off-the-field problems, which, for the most part, given the track record of many NFL players, was incredibly minor. Moral: Let's wait to see what he does when the season actually starts. Then we can start to pass judgment on whether it was wise for Jerry to pass on him.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:31:52 PM

Do you think the Hillcrest Panthers will win a football game this year?

by Andy Todd7/9/2014 4:32:04 PM

I think Hillcrest is looking forward to another fine season in the new realignment, and I'll be at every game, particularly to watch the Panaders at halftime and one of the cute blonde officers who obviously got her looks from her mother.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:34:09 PM

Is Romo healthy? I am sure that the Cowboys will treat him with kid gloves and make him stay in pocket ( this is how Parcells ruined Romo )which will rely on the running game. Do the Cowboys have a good enough running / fullback/ TE game to move the ball.

by Stingray7/9/2014 4:34:23 PM

By all accounts, Romo is healthy. But with a bad back, you never know when one good hit will wreck everything again. You bring up an interesting point about what the Cowboys will try to do. Will they instruct him to get rid of the ball quicker? Will they run it more? You can say that all you want, and then Romo starts his cadence and changes the play and everything's out the window. With all the metrics now being used, I'd like to see some numbers telling us when QBs get hurt. Are the QBs who run, or at least scramble, as Romo does, getting hurt on the move? Or does it happen more often as it does with most QBs, particularly the pocket passers, getting blindsided? Personally, I believe it's the latter. Especially with bad backs.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:37:49 PM

8-8 is garrett back?

by Mitchell R7/9/2014 4:37:53 PM

Depends on how they get to 8-8. If Romo goes down and they still go 8-8, he's back. If the defense is awful again and it's 8-8, I think he'll be back. Jerry doesn't want to fire him. He wants Garrett to succeed. But if there are more sideline gaffes this year, and there's no progress this year in the record absent the reasons above, yeah, I could see Jerry saying that's enough.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:40:02 PM

Horn or Aggies, do either team get to 8-9 wins?

by Ncholas7/9/2014 4:40:07 PM

I read an interesting piece on ESPN.com yesterday under the headline: Why the Aggies won't miss Johnny Football." Basically, the premise was that a lot of SEC teams are looking for QBs, the Aggies have a couple of nice prospects at the position, and Kevin Sumlin has recruited some very good players. All of the above is true. Having said that, I watched what Manziel did last year. As one NFL scout said, that wasn't even a bowl-eligible team without Manziel. An awful defense. And despite some NFL-worthy OL, not a great running game, either. Keep hearing people say that Mike Evans was really the best player on the team, not Manziel. Really? Did those same people see Evans' game fall off the second half of the season? Or see Manziel shake some life into him on several occasions? And who gets him the ball? Outside of Vince Young, I've never seen one player more valuable to a team than Manziel was last season. Having said that, the Aggies have a shot to get to 8 or 9 if those recruits live up to their billing and Kenny Hill, let's say, steps up at QB. Texas has fewer questions in general, in my mind. But still the rather large question at QB. If Ash could stay healthy and productive, I'd rate Texas' chances of having a good season better. But that's a pretty big if.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:47:14 PM

Your favorite city/venue covering a game.

by Jimmy Sell7/9/2014 4:47:24 PM

Love Seattle for anything. San Francisco great for the city and its baseball park, too. My favorite venue/game in Texas? Easy. Texas-OU at the State Fair. Best annual sporting event in Texas, without question. One of the four or five best in college football.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:49:22 PM

With Rangers playing awful, all interest will soon be turning to Cowboys. If they go south quickly, how much pressure do you think Jerry will feel from public and media to make changes? And will he really do it?

by Gary W. Patterson7/9/2014 4:49:38 PM

You've seen Jerry's confidence in Garrett ebb the last couple of years with some of the moves he's made with the staff. The rope is getting shorter. As I noted earlier, if there's not improvement this year, and no significant injuries to blame it on, I think Jerry will seriously consider changing his head coach. But Jerry may define "improvement" differently from mere record. Also, you have to consider this: He hasn't had much of a track record hiring head coaches since that first guy worked out so well. Who does he bring in? We've already got one Gruden in the division. Don't think the NFL would allow two.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:52:49 PM

first to hit home run as a Ranger Joey Gallo or Prince Fielder?

by Bryan C7/9/2014 4:52:56 PM

Prince has already won that derby. Believe he had three before he exited. Who will hit more as a Ranger? The club obviously hopes that'll be Gallo, in a long and distinguished career.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:53:43 PM

Holland does he pitch before July 25

by Richard S7/9/2014 4:53:56 PM

Believe that was the target date, and I don't see any reason to speed that up now. They're not going to win anything this season, and they've got to make sure that they don't aggravate any problems they already have.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:54:41 PM

Can Baylor get to 10 ?

by Paul Webb7/9/2014 4:54:46 PM

Absolutely. In fact, of all the Texas teams, the Bears easily have the best shot. Lots of talent back, and the best QB in the league. Prediction: Petty will put up some big numbers this season and remain in the Heisman conversation all season.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:56:06 PM

What is on our bucket list regarding sports?

by james Gary7/9/2014 4:56:27 PM

Been to eight Olympics and just about every major sporting event you can name. Still no Wimbledon, which would be cool. If nothing else, I would still like to be gainfully employed by the time my youngest's college bills are paid up. Conclusion: I'll be working 10 years after I'm dead, if they'll still have me.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 4:58:18 PM

Other than Yu (and maybe Colby) do you see any of the "Whitmans Sampler" group of starters who might have any legit value going forward (as a starter)?

by U Know Who7/9/2014 4:58:42 PM

If the Rangers are smart, they won't count on Harrison at all, as sad as that is to say. One of my all-time favorite Rangers. Not an ounce of guile in him. I think Perez will still be legit, but it may take him awhile to get back what took him so long to get in the first place. Holland is still a middle-of-the-rotation guy. I'm not so sure about Colby's future. What it means is that they lack at least two starters going forward. They'd better hope Luke Jackson fills one of those spots at some point. And they'd probably ought to investigate what the Phillies would take for Cole Hamels.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 5:01:38 PM

Why will no one ever admit that it's injuries that have caused the demise of the Rangers this year, and the Cowboys the last two years? I understand they don't want to use it as an excuse, but it's obvious injuries have been the main factor. The Rangers and Cowboys have both done an admirable job of trying to overcome them. But at some point, don't you hafta admit that it's the main reason?

by TED7/9/2014 5:01:59 PM

I think that's what we've basically said about the Rangers all along this year. But mistakes have been made, too. The Cowboys knew about the health history of Sean Lee when they drafted him. That's why they were able to get him when they did. The Rangers assumed that most of their rotation would come back, instead of assuming, as you always should, that pitchers are going to break down, and we ought to think of seven starters instead of just five.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 5:03:18 PM

Arkansas wins 5 or fewer game, is Bilema on the real hot seat?

by Mike webb7/9/2014 5:03:25 PM

If he isn't already. I thought he was an interesting hire. Liked what he did at Wisconsin, as did everyone else. But he seems a little like a carpet-bagger since arriving at Arkansas. They've also occasionally looked clueless. Brandon Allen has to take a serious step up at QB, and the defense has to improve significantly.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 5:05:18 PM

next one to get save Scheppers or Ross. Will Feliz ever get over world series gaffe?

by Rob C7/9/2014 5:05:29 PM

Scheppers is the more likely closer of those two, and he may get a chance eventually if the Rangers deal Soria before the deadline. As for Feliz, it hasn't been the World Series failure, it seems, as much as physical limitations. He can no longer hit 98, 99, 100. The sizzle is gone. He occasionally can register 96, but that's not where he stays. And when you throw 93 mph fastballs up and in, as he did to Chris Carter last night, they go a long ways. He has to be able to command three pitches now, and that'll be problematic for him. The good news: The Rangers have the space the rest of this season to find some of those answers.

by Kevin Sherrington7/9/2014 5:08:19 PM

Wow, we've gone over nearly 10 minutes and still lots of great questions. Sorry if I got a little long-winded on some of my answers. I'll try to be more concise next time. Have a great lunch.